The Life and Times of the Haunted Pride
by Celina
Summary: Once a pocket of plenty rested between a desert and a vast mountain range. It was buried when a disaster struck, cloaking the sun and burning the very stone. Where tragedy once bloomed, a new Pride attempts to flourish. Rated teen because it involves lions, and they have to eat somehow. Also, they tend to have to produce offspring somehow, though I won't go in detail there.


Author's Note: Let me start off by saying that I've only been playing LioDen for a few hours, and I'm already hooked. I'm reminded in a way about the Creatures series of games, where you raise Norns and have them breed, except this is lions! :D

Secondly, this is not going to be a fantastic exercise in prose, at least not until the Pride gets properly on its feet, which requires... Well, you'll see. *sighs*

So far, the lions are not speaking, and I doubt I'll have them do that. I am also cutting out the Quests and such from the account, simply because they don't make sense fluff-wise for the tale. Obviously, the Legend is my creation, but the descriptions of individual lions comes from their images on the site.

* * *

**The Birth of a Legend**

The peaceful oasis, nestled in the first mile or so between a vast mountain range and a sparse desert had once been home to a great Pride of lions, led by a great Alpha male, his females and the product of his seed. No other males dared to trespass upon his lands, and he regularly attracted more females to his lands, though few were granted entry into his harem.

But it was not to last.

Darkness swept over the land; dark, billowing clouds swallowing the sun as the earth rumbled below.

Then the world was alight with a great shower of flames and roars of fear and pain could be heard from all who inhabited the Alpha's domain.

When the river of molten rock had finally cooled, still and an extension of the rock which surrounded it, no traces remained of the great cats who had once ruled the place.

* * *

**The Arrival of Chimerat**

Time passed and the tale of the once great Pride has faded into nothing but legends and tales of horror passed down by those who claimed to have escaped the mountain's fury unscathed.

Chimerat was unimpressive as newly mature young male lions went. He was no more muscular, cleaver or swift than his siblings, and had a uniform, golden brown hue from nose to tail tip. Even his mane was not that impressive, though that was certainly no surprise for a male who had been last to feed since he had been old enough for his Pride's Alpha male to view him as a threat.

And so Chimerat had left one day, leaving behind two brothers who were likely to be chased out themselves within the next few months, and many, many sisters who would continue to serve the Alpha's whims, breeding, hunting and leaving at his pleasure.

He had heard of the lands which were once lush, welcoming and prosperous, but were now filled with echoes of dying lions' cries and nothing but flat, heard stone as far as the eye could see. He had also heard that none had dared to venture into those lands for many, many seasons. More seasons than he himself has been drawing breath and wasting meat, to hear the old Alpha speak.

The young male made straight for this forsaken land, and made busy with the task of carving out a manageable section of land for his use, extending it partly into the nearby desert, but mostly within the desolate lands which were finally showing signs of new growth, some grasses, bushes and trees; a few vultures and other scavengers not restricted by lionese superstitions.

* * *

**New Arrivals**

Time passed uneventfully for several weeks, until Chimerat returned home from another barely successful venture into the desert to find enough meat to keep his stomach from turning on this rest of him, and found signs of another lion within the bounds of his lands.

Giving a mighty roar, the young Alpha-for Alpha he was with no other males to challenge his rule-rushed up the gentle incline from the desert and onto the nearly flat sheet of bubbled stone. He stopped when he saw not another bachelor desperate enough to try to steal this desolate patch of land, but rather a female, with a coat just as bland as his own, and a look that suggested she was in need of just as much security and companionship as he was.

She introduced herself as Chianna before she went out to hunt, returning several hours later, unsuccessful in her efforts.

Over the next few days, Chimerat managed to scavenge enough food to keep himself fed, and Chianna must have done the same, as she never complained of hunger, despite the fact that she started to look nearly as haggard as himself.

What the pair might have done to attract a young female to their small territory was never discovered, but Mia of the blue eyes and dark gold fur was welcomed into the Pride, though she was still so inexperienced in hunting that she would simply crouch in a hidden place to watch Chianna's continued failed attempts to capture and kill anything they came across.

* * *

**The Voice of Experience**

Less than two days after Mia joined them-and Chimerat has nearly been killed by a few females he had met while scavenging and tried to convince to join them-an older female, over half again as old as Chimerat and Chianna, arrived with a pair of cubs in toe. Perhaps it was Snowflake's sleek and pale fur or the fact that her body did not yet display the desperate near-starvation seen in the rest of the Pride which convinced the others to allow the trio of new mouths to join their budding Pride, but it was likely the pitiful mewling of the two Cubs which had convinced Chimerat to share what scraps they had and invite them to curl up with them, sharing warmth for the night as the spirits howled along with the wind around them.

As it happened, Snowflake's arrival was the first stroke of great luck Chimerat had experienced since he had set his mind on using the old legends to keep him safe. While the lionesses pair of speckled cubs, equally pale Apela and her warmly cream-coated brother, Dawn, did indeed provide another set of mouths to feed and attached stomachs to fill, the lioness herself proved a competent huntress, downing two kills within the same week, and filling nearly all stomachs near to bursting.

* * *

**When at First You Fail Horribly...**

Of course, when one is hunting a desert and the barren side of a mountain, that luck could not hold out forever, and hunger once more started to gnaw at lionese stomachs in Chimerat's lands, but it was manageable.

Nevertheless, with one female set to reach sexual maturity within a few months and the Cubs well into their first year of life, the Alpha felt the pressure to expand his domain and roamed further afield, trying to secure choice hunting grounds.

Unfortunately, while he was able to defeat several bachelors in single combat, each time Chimerat tried to face off against another Alpha, he was reminded of his inexperience and sent running back home, just grateful that none had decided to chase him down after putting him in his place.

It seemed that, at least for the time being, no others were desperate or foolish enough to venture upon cursed ground, and Chimerat was grateful for that small kindness from the world in which he lived.


End file.
